After a riveting opening win over Louisville (and big boosts in the market), let’s just say the stocks barely flinched during Syracuse-UConn. A predictable 48-14 scoreline is all that came out of East Hartford, CT. last Saturday. Dino Babers and crew steamrolled the Huskies with 465 yards of total offense. Garrett Shrader had another fantastic day at the helm and the SU defense shut down a decent rushing attack. All that being said, there were some small movements in the ‘Cuse stock market, so let’s get into them.
Stock Up
Garrett Shrader
His value is at an all time high. Shrader went 20-23 passing on Saturday, his best ever completion percentage, and threw for a career high 287 yards. Offensive Coordinator Robert Anae opened up the Orange attack, letting Shrader take a couple deep shots which worked to perfection. Damien Alford and FAU transfer D’Marcus Adams both snagged 40-yard TD tosses. Courtney Jackson also got in the mix with a score after a slow week one. Another note – Shrader didn’t fare that well on the ground this week, but a lighter workout should bode well later on in the season.
Alijah Clark
Despite the almost targeting fiasco, Alijah Clark had a really good game against UConn. The Rutgers transfer made seven tackles from the strong safety spot. This is back-to-back contests where Clark has been flying to the football. He only had three tackles in the Louisville game, but had much more coverage responsibilities. Clark has made the transition from backup corner to starting safety look rather easy.
Andre Szymt
The former Lou Groza award winner is perfect through two games in 2022. Dino Babers said postgame he told the fifth-year senior to “get back to his old stuff, his old training” which worked fantastically in 2018. Szymt must’ve found that groove again with the help of new special teams coordinator Bob Ligashesky. The jury’s still out when the pressure’s on, but right now, SU’s kicker is spotless.
Team Discipline
After 18 penalties a week ago, there was nowhere to go but up for Syracuse. On Saturday, the Orange committed just three penalties for 15 yards. Most of the 18 flags against Louisville came on false starts, illegal motions and the like, but that was no longer a problem against UConn. If penalties had remained a problem through the season, people might question Dino Babers’ effectiveness as a head coach. Instead, getting it fixed shows that Babers and the rest of the coaching staff have a good grasp on how to get this squad focused.
Stock Down
WR Depth
We at the Fizz are all in favor of everyone getting opportunities in a game like this. But don’t throw the fourth-string QB a pass before the young receivers who you hyped up two years ago. The wideouts need opportunities. Dan Villari, on the other hand, is probably going to transfer again.
UConn Athletics
That rebuild’s going to take a loooooong time. It was “beat ‘Cuse” week in East Hartford… SU Men’s Soccer beat UConn 5-0. You could’ve put the Orange soccer players in football uniforms and they still would’ve had a chance against Jim Mora’s crew.
